U.S. Marine Lance Cpls. Brian Hernandez (left), 19,

U.S. Marine Lance Cpls. Brian Hernandez (left), 19, from San Francisco, and Nick Montez (right), 20, from Lewiston, Idaho, a mortarman and an improvised explosive device dog handler with the 81mm mortar platoon, Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment provide security with Montez's dog Mally while helping Afghan National Army soldiers clear strains of illegal activity remaining among the bazaar's legitimate vendors during Operation Sandman here, Dec. 28. Safar Bazaar was once a hotbed for insurgents, its shops teeming with illegal drugs and streets laden with improvised explosive devices. Over the last two years, four Marine infantry battalions and their Afghan National Security Forces counterparts have labored to make it safe. Today, the buzzing bazaar is the commercial hub of southern Garmsir district. Thousands of Afghans from around the district travel to the bazaar each week to purchase goods.

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28/12/2011

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